Lyudmil Staykov, director (Bulgaria)
Professor Lyudmil Staykov is a Bulgarian theater and film director. He starts winning awards with his first plays in the Burgas Dramatic Theater, on a national level. Staykov makes his cinematic debut with Affection in 1972 which wins the Golden Award at the Moscow film festival. His next couple of films establish him as one the brightest and most talented artists in Bulgarian cinema. The Khan Asparuh trilogy becomes a national phenomenon in the 80s and the compressed Bulgarian-American version 681 AD: The Glory of Khan is sold in over 50 countries. Time of Violence (1988), based on the novel by Anton Donchev, takes part in various international festivals, is included in the best 11 films of the year in Tokyo, selected in the programme at Cannes and sold in over 30 countries.
Lyudmil Staykov was awarded the Sofia Municipality award for outstanding achievements in world cinema in 2007.